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Thursday, October 19, 2017

Recap 10/20/17 - Music

I've been thinking a lot lately about
how much music means to me.

Though I've only been learning to play
guitar for a little over two years now, music has been a central
thread in my life for as long as I can remember. It weaves through
my memories like a movie soundtrack, some bands and songs defining
certain periods of my life while others have been a constant presence
and a reliable source of solace and inspiration through the years.

Tom Petty was a presence like that for
me and always will be. While my heart goes out to his family and his
friends for their personal loss and I mourn the public loss of his
creative force in this world, I also find myself experiencing
gratitude and appreciation for the legacy of music he left behind and
it's profound influence on me.

I've been listening to all of our Tom
Petty and The Heartbreakers albums over the last few weeks in our new
music room (click here to read my post about that room on The Cabbage Blog) and I find myself continually in a state of awe over these
songs, on their own merits but also because of the meaning and
memories they provoke for me.

It is difficult for me to pick a
favorite Tom Petty song because there are just so many great ones but
when pressed I usually say its a beautiful ballad called “You Can Still Change Your Mind” from the album “Hard Promises”.

Here are some of the lyrics:

Everybody wants all the world can
give 'em

Everybody wants to get all they can
get

Everybody's waiting on somethin'
that hasn't come yet

And you can hide it for a little
while honey

You can try and just lose it for
awhile

Then it's gonna do somethin' to ya
somewhere down inside

But you can still change your mind

You can change your feelings

You can still change your mind

In my view, this song speaks to an
emotional maturity that we should all strive for. I interpret it to
be saying that we don't have to let life's disappointments get the
best of us. That even when we are hurt, angry, lost or grieving, we
still have the power to choose our thoughts, to focus our minds on
hope, love and creativity rather than fear, blame or destruction. And by doing that we “can
change our feelings” and change the energy we bring into our lives
and the lives of others.

It's so much easier said than done but when I'm
struggling with it I often listen to or just think of this song. It has
gotten me through many dark days. So thank you Tom Petty.

I also have a new social media link to add to my list this time, A new Instagram account that I created specifically for my music related posts (and a place to follow all my favorite bands, musicians and music enthusiasts in one feed). Here's the updated list: